He would just have to come back or find another store. He would make a list and think it out better. For now, he had clothing for Shay and now he’d need to find a safe place to stay while he made more permanent plans. He moved toward the exit now, the bags hanging off his arm so his hands were free. The AR-15 moved from side to side. Best case scenario was that he made it back to the Jeep without firing a shot. Shooting would bring more of the creatures and he didn’t need that. With each aisle he came to, he checked and rechecked. Listened for sounds of movement and moans. He was feeling better and better with each step until he got thirty feet from the entrance and froze. There were at least three dozen zombies bumping into the registers by the door and more outside.
Where in the hell had they come from and why? Did they smell him? Was that it? He crouched slightly and tried to think. He knew there was the entrance at the gardening section but there were zombies there. He had to draw these creatures away from the front entrance. If he could do that, he could make a rush out the door for the Jeep and shoot the zombies that were milling around outside the door. Slowly backing up, Jess moved to the can food section. He would take a large can of what he could find and toss it in the opposite direction and draw the creatures away from the front entrance.
When he came around the corner, two zombies nearly ran into him and their shrieks filled the air. Reggie jerked as though hit with a live wire. He brought his AR-15 up without thinking and began to shoot and walk backwards. Their heads disappeared in a mist of brain and blood. He heard the screams of the zombies near the door and he gritted his teeth. The fight was on.
FIVE
Ethan pointed to the hospital three blocks away. It was a three-story structure and reflected the afternoon sun.
“If we can pick up supplies and maybe antibiotics in their pharmacy, I think that might help in the long run,” Ethan said. They had parted ways at the gun store with the little family who had wanted to follow them.
“Looks like the clueless family in the SUV is still following us,” Zahara said, turning on the bench seat to look out the back.
“The guy’s an idiot. He needs to get his family out of this city and either head home or find a safe place to hunker down instead of following us,” Xander grumbled.
“Stupid is as stupid does,” Zahara said. She leaned heavily over Ethan’s body and leaned out his window. She aimed her weapon at the SUV and laughed. Ethan watched in the side mirror as the SUV slowed and stopped and then turned down a street. She moved back into the cab of the truck with a satisfied grunt.
“Do you have to wear that stupid samurai sword? It’s poking my head,” Ethan said and shoved at the sword that was sticking out the back of Zahara’s jacket.
“Blow me and then deal with it. Whoa, hold up. Look, there are millions of freaking zombies up there,” Zahara said, pointing. The Chevy slowed and Ethan glanced at an ambulance that was parked halfway on top of a compact car, made even more compact by the front tires of the ambulance. The doors were open on the small vehicle but both vehicles were abandoned, dried blood swiped along each vehicle and the ground. Scattered around the street and sidewalks were rotting bodies of zombies with parts and pieces of their heads missing. There had been some kind of battle and brass littered the ground. Ethan wondered if the police had tried to make a stand.
“There has to be at least a couple hundred of those things up there at the hospital. As good as we are, I don’t think Zahara and I can kill that many, even with you on a weapon,” Xander said softly and looked over at Ethan. Zahara snorted beside him and Ethan eyed his narrowly.
“We can always find another hospital,” Zahara said, her foot shifting in her sandals now resting on the dash.
“It’ll probably be the same scenario at every hospital. Shit. Well, it was a nice idea,” Xander said and began to back up.
“Hold on a tick, let me pull up a city map of this area,” Ethan said and pulled his phone out. He tapped for a few moments and looked over at Xander.
“There’s a street at the next corner and we can use that to come up on the other side of the hospital. I’m gonna hop out and see if I can get the siren going on that rig and the lights too. If we can draw the zombies away from the hospital, maybe we can do a fast run and get in and out of there,” Ethan suggested. Xander grunted and nodded.
“Great thinking. Who fucking knew you were a genius?” Zahara said and laughed, knocking Ethan again with the handle of her samurai sword. He snorted,
